The Key to the Future
by Melody's last song
Summary: Sequel to Cursed Friendship, my first ever fic. Key just can't seem to stay dead for long, he's back and with a vengeance, this time ready to rid the world of Jamal and save his friends.
1. A puzzling dream

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Sonic characters, or the setting, just a few made-ups which I have created….obviously…because they are called made-ups.**

**Here it is, the long awaited sequel to "Cursed Friendship"! I know some people are glad to see that it's here:D**

**And also, if you haven't read "Cursed Friendship" please read that first then begin reading this, because that'll answer any questions you might have and I don't really, at the minute, feel like writing a prologue or anything. Now here is my newest story, enjoy, and even if you aren't logged in to fanfiction, send a review and tell me what you think. Feel free to read my profile and maybe look at my other stories. I love to get reviews on stories I have already finished too! So please send in a few for those too if you find the chance to read them!**

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The old otter cared for Melody night and day, making sure she was as comfortable as possible even in her comatose state. She was growing weary from the constant worry and often considered just giving up on the unconscious panther-angel. But she knew she didn't have the heart to do such a thing.

The otter, Eva by name, ran her fingers through her frazzled hair and rubbed her eyes, trying to soothe the irritated and tired skin which hung in dark folds. She was no longer young and her bones creaked as she moved, protesting against her slight weight. She yawned to herself, hobbling to Melody and administering a few medicines. As usual, the girl didn't respond, she just lay there, breathing slowly, mouth slightly open.

Eva didn't understand why the poor girl didn't just wake up. Her wounds had long since healed and there was no reason for her to be stuck in her coma, and yet she slept on, unaware of the outside world.

As for the other panther-angel, Eva had painstakingly buried him on the cliff-top among the flowers which, since his death, had grown even more glorious and beautiful than ever before. She had written a little poem, in proper respect, and laid the waterproof wax paper atop the mound of earth, weighted down by a few smooth river rocks.

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Amy leapt up and down excitedly and came running at Shadow, screaming as she jumped into his arms. Shadow tried to back away but she simple did not let him. "What in the world is going on?" he asked, eyes solemn and yet amused at the same time. Since their marriage, Shadow had opened up a little bit, and every once in a while, he chanced a smile in public.

Amy giggled and squealed, "Shadow! Shadow! You'll never guess what!"

Shadow held her tightly, slightly nervous that she would fall from his grasp as she continued to squirm happily and excitedly. "You're right, I'll never guess." He answered.

"Well that spoils the fun!" Amy answered good-naturedly.

Shadow just shrugged and replied, "I never was one for guessing games…"

"I just took a test, and I'm going to have a kid! We're finally gonna be parents!" She screamed in his ear, more excited than a school girl over prom. (heh…I should know! Lolz!)

Shadow nearly dropped her in surprise. His mouth hung open and he wasn't sure what emotion he felt welling up inside of his chest. He couldn't find the words to say to her either, so he stood there, looking down at her, face frozen in shock. Finally he stammered, "That's…that's wonderful!"

Amy kissed him lightly on the cheek, allowing him to put her down as she ran towards the door, calling as she sprinted, "I'm gonna tell all of our friends the good news!"

For some reason, Shadow began to feel exhausted, as if the surprise had sapped all his energy. The prospect of raising a child was a harrowing task in itself. He sighed, happy and yet unsure.

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Jaymal was still sore about Amy, Shadow, and Lizzey's escape three months before at the cliff-top. He craved revenge and he would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. He had spent the last few months searching for the perfect method among this twisted mind, and so far, had found nothing. "Maybe I need to know the position of my enemies first…" he mused, stroking his goatee thoughtfully, "Then I can strike them when least expected…and to my advantage."

He extracted a photo from his pocket, glaring in hatred at the likeness of Shadow and Amy. "Whatever I do to them, it'll be the most devious thing ever." Ripping the picture to shreds, he threw the scraps into a fire burning low in the fireplace. A few sparks flew up, igniting them at once and burned them through.

Then, he called for five of his most skilled angels and had them line up horizontally. He inspected each of them, pacing in front of the group as he ordered, "Three of you find those two hedgehogs! The other two, seek out the smaller, brown hedgehog. I want as much information as you can get about the targets."

The five saluted, taking flight in a rustling of feathers, and soared out of the window one by one, dividing into groups and flying their opposite ways. Jaymal sighed and sagged down into his thrown, overlooking the huge hall. A large, golden carpet extended from under his feet to the very entrance, running under the huge, solid oak doors and further into the next room.

Eyes fluttering, the angel-in-command gradually drifted off to sleep, snoring lighting as he head lulled to one side. Those who were sent to serve him dared not wake him, lest he awoke with bad temper so they tiptoed off. He found his dreams most troubling.

_Jaymal sat eating lunch in one of his many vast meadows outside. The grass and wind were abnormally still, and the sun, no matter how bright, produced no heat. Jaymal blinked a few times, surprised at the strange weather; as his eyes opened the second time, an angel appeared in front of him._

_The angel's face was locked into a snarl as he grabbed Jaymal's throat and hissed into his face, "You thought you could get rid of me, didn't you, Jaymal? But I have news for you! I'll be back and with a vengeance! I won't stay dead for long…this I promise…" He threw Jaymal back to the ground then added, "Oh, and another thing, your victory wasn't as complete as you thought…Melody is still alive."_

_Jaymal shivered and yet lost none of his natural cruelty, "Well. Well. Well. Key is it? Reduced to threatening people in their dreams now? If you do manage to come back, I'll just kill you again…it was easy enough the first time."_

_Key snorted, "You won't be so lucky next time. The next time we face, I'll be more powerful than you can imagine, just you wait and see…"_

_Jaymal smirked then snarled, "We'll see about that. Until then, have fun in hell!"_

_Key laughed, "As if…just because you'll end up there doesn't mean I did…" He vanished._

Jaymal settled down into more peaceful sleep.

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**First chapter of the sequel! I hope you guys like it and I'm hoping to get lots n lots of reviews! With any luck you'll like it as much as the first…because…KEY IS COMING BACK! YAY! And this one probably won't be a tragedy so Key is safe from death (one should hope.) Don't forget to review…b/c in my boring life…reviews are a breath of fresh air and lovely encouragement to keep writing! **


	2. A welcomed visit

**Disclaimer: **I don't own the Sonic characters…but I do own Key, Melody, Jaymal and maybe a few others that will appear later.

**Second chapter iz up! I'm going to work ahead on some of these so I can get a chapter up every week at least. In my last story my update times were a bit unpredictable…ranging from a few days to three weeks. Oh yeah…as I've said countless times, don't forget to review!**

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Jaymal snapped awake, slamming his hand down on the arm of his chair as he thought angrily, "You think you're so clever, Key, don't you, trying to haunt my dreams. But I know your main weakness…since your little girlfriend somehow survived…so I wouldn't get so cocky if I were you…" Smirking, he pushed himself from his chair, summoning two more of his guards. "I want you to seek out Melody take her prisoner. I want her alive."

They saluted and took off.

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Amy excitedly chatted with Cream. "I just can't wait. Maybe this will be the thing we're looking for to help Shadow be happier!"

Cream grinned, helping Cheese decorate a cake she baked earlier that day. As she neatly drew petals on a flower with a small tube of blue frosting, she answered, "I hope so. But you deserve some happiness too, Amy. I can't wait until he or she is born."

Amy smiled, leaning against one of the counter's in the kitchen of Cream's house. She could always trust Cream to be so understanding and caring, a fact which encouraged her to confide almost anything in her. She glanced at the cake, marveling in Cream and Cheese's artistic abilities. The cake was three levels tall, each level reduced in size and slathered thickly and yet neatly with vanilla icing. Cream was decorating the sides with blue and pink flowers.

Cream finished with the blue frosting and proceeded with adding green vines in between the evenly spaced flowers as she asked, "Have you thought of any good names yet, Amy?"

Amy shook her head, "Not yet…but I'll think of some tonight. Maybe you can help me." She heard slight rustling outside the window, "I thought I heard something, did you?"

Cream nodded, "Maybe it was just the wind…"'

Amy shook her head, "I would have heard the wind chime you have outside…it wasn't just the wind…" She glanced around, taking a few deep breaths. "Maybe it's nothing…" she murmured. As she turned, movement caught her eye and the sound of the fluttering of wings met her ears. "Angels…" she said aloud.

"What?" Cream asked, following Amy's gaze to the starry lit sky and yet seeing nothing.

"Oh, remember when I went on that adventure to the Angel Realm?" Amy asked her, "I thought I heard an angel…but I don't know if it's a friend or foe…"

"I think it would be exciting to meet an angel." Cream answered, returning to her cake and adding the finishing touches. She squirted a little bit of frosting onto her finger, sampling the sweet mixture before adding, "Well, as long as it was a nice angel." Cheese agreed.

Amy sighed but managed a smile as she thought, "I'm not even sure I have any angel friends left. I never found out what happened to Melody or Key…"

Cream squirted a whole glob of the frosting in Cheese's mouth and he started bouncing around on a super sugar high. "CHAO CHAO CHAO!" he sang happily, flying straight into the window frame and falling into the bushes below.

"Cheese, are you alright?" Amy asked, looking down into the leaves. She screamed as someone shot upwards in a flutter of wings, knocking her backwards.

"HEY YOU IDIOT!" Amy screamed, falling flat on her back and leaping up, immediately regretting that swift motion as her stomach gave a sharp stab of pain in protest.

"Amy, are you alright?" Cream asked, a bit preoccupied with the angel that hovered near the window, watching them. "Wow…a real live angel…" she thought, picking up Cheese who lay dazed on the floor nearby.

"Calm down, calm down." The angel whispered soothingly, perching on the window sill and saying, "You may not recognize me; in fact, you probably won't recognize me unless you were psychic. But anyways, I want you to listen carefully to what I have to say. I don't have much time, I know for a fact that Jaymal has sent angels out to find you and the rest of your friends and I can only exist in the real world for only a little while longer." He paused, "That baby that's due in a while, believe it or not, may possess the power needed to save both your realm and the angel realm."

Amy's eyes widened.

"There isn't really a way to know for sure until it's born, but I'm willing to bet everything on it. So be careful, Jaymal might send someone to kidnap the kid." He continued, "But you're formidable enough with that hammer of yours so I have full confidence in you. But I have a favor to ask…" he trailed off.

Amy thought a moment, "What is it? I can see if I can help."

He hesitated for a moment, "Get the gang together again, including Melody, she's alive, in the angel realm. I don't know where, but I want you to get everyone to safety."

"Wait." Amy exclaimed as he turned to leave, "Who are you? And how do you know all this!"

He smiled at her, "A friend…you might know me as Key…" He vanished, leaving Amy staring at the open window in disbelief.

"Wow…" Cream finally whispered, breaking the silence, "I finally saw what an angel looked like." Cheese sat down on her lap, exhausted now.

"We have to find Shadow, Melody, and Lizzey…" Amy suddenly murmured, "They're needed…I can't believe that we'll play a part in the destiny of a whole realm of angels..."

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A group of angels swooped down lower, analyzing the small street of a village, quickly finding the right house with their keen eyesight. The leader motioned for them to land on the roof and they stood a moment, spreading their wings slightly for balance, and searched for possible entrances.

A large, brown-winged angel motioned towards a window with his hand, nodding to the others. He leapt down, climbing through only to be greeted by the whistling of wind towards his head. The last thing he remembered was a pink hedgehog standing over him, hammer in her hand as if she had been anticipating his arrival.

The same fate awaited each and every other angel that tried to enter. As the last fell to the floor, Cream peeked out from her hiding place and asked, "Is it safe?" Cheese sat on her head anxiously.

Amy nodded with a small smile, already dragging them one by one out the door and into the dumpsters. "They'll have a shock when they wake up." She commented, slamming them shut and making sure that the next day was garbage day.

Cream giggled and asked, "Amy, when you go to the Angel Realm? Can I come?"

"Of course, Cream! I wouldn't dream of leaving you behind!" She exclaimed. "Nor Cheese either."

"Thanks…" she murmured in reply before suggesting, "Why don't we go inside and finish the cake…then we can all enjoy a slice."

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**Amazingly enough, I don't have writers block anymore! (massive cheerings) Anyways…finally got a bit more plot into this story…and of course the one and only Key! But he ain't quite back yet…cue suspenseful music**

**Lolz, anyways, next update will come something in the course of a week or two.**


	3. Awake!

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Sonic charries…**

**Okay, the evil monster of procrastination just loves haunting me! I STARTED this like a week ago (just the first four paragraphs) and now I'm finishing it (a week later.) So, sorry about that!**

**Melody: ** Are you gonna hurry up n start writing! The sooner I get some action in this story the better!

**Me: **Just be patient…I know I created you and that's probably not your strong point…but…um…I'll give you…chocolate!

**Melody: **OKAY! –silence—

**Lizzey: **I have just one question, what the heck is your real name!

**Me: **o.0 The world may never know…

**Okay, sorry for that outburst of strangeness. Now to continue with the story. Oh yeah, by the way, if you wish to see other characters (such as Tails, Knuckles, etc) just tell me, I can add them in later chapters if anyone wants to see them.**

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Dawn slowly broke out over the sky, spreading its rays of light in great patches through the dozy clouds as the temperature steadily rose to a comfortable degree. The roads were tinged with pink light and dew lined every blade of grass, slowly evaporating as time passed.

Amy opened her eyes, yawning and suddenly bursting out into a fit of giggles as the low rumble of the garbage truck hummed down the street.

Shadow opened his eyes, "What is so funny?" he asked, "Is pregnancy making you crazy?"

She laughed harder than before, sides starting to hurt now as she somehow managed to answer, "Yes! No! I don't know!"

Shadow stared at her, bewildered, "Okay…I'll take your word for it…" He went into the bathroom for a shower as Amy climbed to the other side of the bed and hastily dialed the phone.

It rang twice before a spunky, hyper voice answered, "Hello? Who is this? A staulker? Or are you a salesman? Or just some idiot prank caller! Or—"

Amy cut her off, "Focus, Lizzey!"

She winced as Lizzey let out a shrill shriek of delight, "AMY!"

"Yeah, it's me, calm down already. I need you to meet me this afternoon at my house."

"Really! Is that dork Shadow going to be there?" Lizzey asked.

Laughing slightly, Amy answered, "Yes, but this is important, so get over your grudge for a while, kay? And besides, I got some news."

"Alright."

They said their goodbyes then hung up. Amy smiled to herself, calling Cream and informing her upon the meeting as well. "I wish I could find a way to contact Key…" she thought, "We'll definitely need his help…"

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After several hours of waiting, Jaymal finally lost patience. "Where are those stupid angels?" he muttered to himself, "Are they really incompetent enough to not be able to capture a few puny hedgehogs!" He stood up hastily, pacing the room, "Looks like I'll have to take more drastic measures…"

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Melody's dreams were few and did not hold much excitement. She was vaguely aware of Eva's caretaking and medicine administering, but couldn't break the barrier to respond. She did not feel the warmth of the fire, or the cool wetness of the sand inside the cave, rather the dark void of pointless existence.

A warm voice suddenly echoed in her mind, "Melody…" Her spirit blindly wandered toward it, following the encouraging commands. "Wake up…don't waste your life like this, please, for the sake of everyone." Pushing past the veils of darkness, she emerged into consciousness, the light of the sun streaming into the cave instantly blinding her. "Key…" she murmured in a hoarse voice.

"You're awake. You know, you really had me worried for a bit there…"

Melody shrieked in fright, leaping to her feet, hand instantly moving to where her sword usually hung from her belt. She realized that the owner of the voice was no threat and asked, "Where is my sword?"

Eva pointed to the side of the cave, where her array of weaponry sat, gathering dust. "Right there." She watched as Melody gathered her swords and daggers, placing a few in her belt and the others in her bag silently. "May I know your name?" Eva ventured to ask, rather regretting the stony silence from her patient.

Melody hesitated then shrugged, "I don't know…" she answered, trailing off, "I can't really remember…at first I did, but now it disappeared or something."

"That's a shame…" Eva replied, watching her carefully, "Any idea where you're going to go now?"

Melody shook her head, "To find the voice who rescued me from the ongoing darkness, he knows who I am, I can feel it."

"That Key person I heard you mumbling about?" Eva asked.

Melody turned to look at her, "Key? I don't remember mumbling about anything…but it sounds meaningful to me…" Without any further words, she left the cave. Eva sighed, unsure if she should be happy or sad.

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"So what's so important that you called this meeting?" Lizzey asked, bouncing up and down on the couch as she grinned up at Amy before shooting a nasty glare at Shadow.

"What's her deal?" Shadow whispered into Amy's ear.

"She's holding a grudge for leaving her in the face of danger earlier…" Amy replied, looking back at Lizzey and speaking, "Okay, first of all, I've just learned that we need to go to the angel realm, and that I'm going to have a baby—"

She didn't get much further as Lizzey shrieked, "THAT'S AWESOME, AMY! WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO NAME HER?"

Cream, who had been listening politely the whole time, tried to speak over Lizzey, but her voice remained unheard.

"SHUT UP!" Shadow's voice boomed.

Lizzey closed her mouth, glaring at him again.

"Okay, what, Cream?" Amy asked, glancing at Lizzey apologetically.

"I was just going to ask, how are we going to get to the angel realm? Will chaos control work?"

This started more questions from Lizzey, though they were much quieter and controlled this time. "Angel Realm? How come we're going there?"

Amy and Cream hastened to explain.

"I doubt chaos control would do the trick here…" Shadow mused to himself, "Somehow, I think it would take too much energy…"

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**I've got plans for the next few chapters now, so I'll definitely have fun writing them. Anyways, hope you liked this chapter though it does seem a bit shorter than usual (or maybe that's just me and for all I know it could be longer than usual.) I really need to work on writing longer chapters! –hits self on head—**


	4. Shrine

**Disclaimer: **The chapter just can't officially start w/o the lovely disclaimer, now can it? –groans from audience—yup! –nodnod—anyways, I don't own the Sonic charries, but I did create Melody (who's picture I might post on deviantart, by the way! Once I'm done drawing it of course) and Key…so you no touchy!!

**Ummm…for once in my life, I don't have much to say in bold before the chapter. What a surprise! Anyways, enjoy and don't forget to review!! (Seriously, I've only gotten a few reviews so far! What's the dealio?!)**

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Once again, Jaymal was in a foul mood. Nothing seemed to be working out right and was well aware of the fact that his revenge may not work out exactly how he planned. And the word that a group of his angels were buried in a dump, barely alive, did little to improve his mood.

He paced his throne room over and over again, unable to find a suitable solution. "I've never fought against people with this much up their sleeve." He admitted to himself, "But that'll make it all the better when I beat them…" He smirked to himself, "I'll consider them…worthy opponents."

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Shadow puzzled over the issue of arriving in the angel realm for several hours, still doubting the option of the chaos emeralds. "Maybe if something powered them up…perhaps a machine…" he thought.

Amy watched him pensively for the first half hour, but decided that this was probably normal, considering how moody and quiet he usually was in the first place. She devoted her full attention to entertaining her house guests while casually discussing the upcoming adventure.

"It may be hard, but we'll stick together and save the whole realm!" Amy exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah, but we know Shadow will just leave me in the face of danger…again…" Lizzey muttered to herself, refraining from saying_ other_ things she wished to say about him.

"Oh give the guy a break!" Amy answered, a bit annoyed with her ongoing comments against the ebony hedgehog.

Cream sighed to herself as Cheese whirled about the room, on another sugar rush. She watched the two for a minute then answered, "You know, I'm sure that if you gave him a chance, you'd probably find that he's changed a lot for the better. Maybe you should just try to be friends with him now."

Lizzey burst out laughing, "HAHA! Don't make me laugh!!"

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Sadar grumbled impatiently to himself, shivering in the fine mist of a rain which had just started falling from the light, gray-hued clouds. The wind taunted his folded angel wings, threatening to loosen the brown feathers. He ignored all this, of course, more concerned with his predicament.

He did not know the location of over half the angels in his group, and wasn't looking forward to making the report to Jaymal and facing some horrendous punishment. He sighed, the memory of last night bothering the edge of his consciousness as he picked a bit of trash out of his wing.

"I've got to do something to put myself back in his favor." Sadar thought, surveying the remainder of his troops, who were tired and annoyed. "No doubt he's already heard anyway. I just hope _something _will happen to help us."

"Oy, boss!" An apprentice angel called Star yelled over, pointing into a ravine below in excitement, "Someone is coming! And they look defenseless!!"

Sadar rolled his eyes, thinking about reprimanding the young boy, but refrained from doing so, partially due to fondness. Instead, he sighed and looked over, "Defenseless, you say?"

He nodded enthusiastically, spreading his wings out. "Yeah, she's just wandering willy-nilly like she don't know where she's headed!"

Sadar shrugged and turned to his troops, "I suppose we have nothing better to do. Maybe Jaymal can find use for this traveler." He paused and added mentally, "If we're lucky!"

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Tails sat alone in his workshop, watching the huge mess as if he expected it to just pick itself up and organize itself. He sighed to himself. "I picked a great time to have inventors' block." He thought to himself, "and now the only option is to either get ideas, or." He gasped and winced at the very thought, "clean up a little!"

A knock sounded on his door. Tails threw his hands up into the air in frustration, gazing at the endless sea of junk, suddenly experiencing a bit of dejavu. "How am I supposed to get to that door?!" he asked himself, remembering the _last _time he was confronted with this situation.

Finally he just settled with yelling, "I'm not at home!!" as loud as he could.

"Oh, okay, I'll try again late—wait!!! Tails! Open the door before I break it down!" Shadow yelled from the other end, "and when I find you in there, you'll be in for a world of pain!"

Tails gulped in fear, "Just kidding! I'm home!! Please don't hurt me!" He took flight, reprimanding himself for not thinking of that sooner, and crossed the abyss that was his stuff and opened the door with a nervous laugh. "heh heh, wasn't expecting you…heh heh…"

Shadow stared at him silently, crossing his arms, not at all amused. Finally he answered, "I need some help…"

"Oh…" Tails answered, "With what? If it has anything to do with machines, I'm an expert!" He smiled confidently.

Shadow paused a moment, "Yeah…it does. I need for you to build a machine that'll get us into another realm…like a portal almost."

Tails scrunched up his nose in thought, "Can't chaos control do the trick for you? And what realm are you talking about? Wouldn't I need coordinates?"

Shadow shrugged, "I doubt chaos control would have the power…and I'm supposed to get Amy and her friends to the angel realm…somehow."

"I'll see what I can do, Shadow, but I'm probably going to need all the chaos emeralds to make this thing work."

Shadow nodded, "We've got four of the seven right now…and Sonic might have one. As for the remainder of them, I'll check Eggman's base and Rouge's house. No doubt I might find a couple in one of those places." Without a further word, he chaos controlled away.

Tails shrugged to himself, closing the door behind him. "I guess I have an excuse to put off the cleaning of my workshop."

Shadow returned home and explained the plan to the rest of the group. "Starting tomorrow, we're doing a bit of…chaos retrieval." He said, smirking.

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Melody had stumbled upon an ancient forest, and was staring at the age old trees in wonder, eyes growing wide. "Wow, I never knew such a place existed." She murmured to herself, approaching a shrine near the path leading into the outer fringes of the woods.

The shrine was an old thing, covered in moss and brown leaves of all sorts. A rose and stem, carved from the finest wood of a cherry tree curved around the base, snaking up to a similarly coloured wooden platform. Several words, of a different language, were carved into the wood, circling around a greenish orb encased in a crystal, melding with the wood in the very center of the platform. Melody took a step forward, reaching out a hand to touch the wondrous piece of work, feeling an urge to trace her fingers along the worn words, as if they held meaning to her and her alone.

Sadar's troops watched from the trees, eyes intently watching the angel.

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**Okay, sorry this was a bit late in coming…heh…anyways…read and review. And, once again, I don't have much to say. Wow, I'm just not talkative nowadays.**


	5. O Snap!

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Sonic charries…**

**Sorry for the slowness of the updates again. –anime sweat drop—But anyways, it's almost Halloween! And I ate a stinkin' handful of Bertie Botts beans the fastest at this party and won a HUGE bowl of candy! –victory dance—**

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"Okay, here's the deal." Shadow started saying, standing in front of the group, "Tails has agreed to help make a portal, but he requires all the chaos emeralds. What we need to do is look around in Rouge's house as well as Eggman's base. I suppose Faker has one as well. We'll have to split up to save time."

"How many people are actually coming to the angel realm with us?" Amy asked, "I know that we need the original group, but do you think we should take any extra besides Cream and Cheese?"

Shadow shrugged, "We want to keep this as secret as possible." He replied, thinking a bit. "Too many people know…and there might be rumors about us."

"But everybody already knows you're an insane idiot." Lizzey muttered under her breath.

"Good point…" Amy started, and for a moment, Lizzey thought she was agreeing with her almost inaudible statement. "We don't want people thinking we've gone crazy or anything. No one actually really believes in angels anymore…" she continued.

"I never stopped believing!" Cream called out, happily, "No matter how many times the kids at school made fun of me for it!"

Amy couldn't help but smile at the innocence of Cream's statement.

"Okay, Amy, you and Lizzey will go to Rouge and try to get her emeralds. If she disagrees, take them from her. Cream, since you know Faker pretty well, you ask him…if he wonders why, making something up. I'll handle Eggman." Shadow ordered.

Everyone nodded.

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"What now?!" Jaymal demanded, too lazy to get up from his chair even at the constant knocking at his door. "Can't this wait?!"

Sadar sighed and called through, "No sir!! This definitely can't wait!"

Jaymal recognized the voice instantly and got up, growling to himself, "How dare he show his face again in my castle?! He'll wish he never was born when I'm through with him…" He threw the door open, mouth dropping as he saw several of Sadar's troops struggling to keep a young angel still as she kicked and screamed, unable to reach her sword.

"LET GO OF ME!" She shrieked, growling and snarling, now trying to scratch them with her fearsome claws.

"Is that…" Jaymal started to ask, but trailed off as the angel suddenly broke free, slamming both of Sadar's troops into the floor. In a flash, her sword was out and she was glaring at Sadar and Jaymal, eyes just daring them to come any closer.

"You're off the hook if you can subdue her again." Jaymal growled to Sadar, "Then comes the questioning…"

"This girl must be worth more than I thought…" Sadar thought, drawing his sword in a flash of cold steel.

They circled each other for a minute or two, eyes locked on each other as they tightened their grips on their swords. Sadar sized up his opponent, trying to figure out an efficient plan of attack to end this fight quickly. He didn't want to attack with such force that would kill her, since that would spell certain death for him, and he didn't want to attack weakly enough so that he would get injured in the process.

"Get on with it…" Jaymal ordered, fists clenched.

Sadar growled in frustration. He suddenly saw a window for attack as his opponent went through some sort of dizzy spell usually connected with head trauma. He charged at her, sword swinging in a graceful arc, forcing her back several steps as she tried to retaliate.

She couldn't see straight and her heart quickened in panic. "I'm gonna die…" she thought, losing her balance, "I can't fight back like this…"

"Yes you can!" she told herself, blinking several times as her sword slashed into his right wing, cutting through the bone and feathers with absolute ease. She found the use of her sword almost natural, as if she had been doing this kind of thing her whole life. _Maybe I was skillful with a sword…before I lost my memory…_ she thought to herself, smiling triumphantly as Sadar fell back, nursing his wing.

"You're feisty…" He growled towards her, "But don't think that an injured wing will stop me…"

She laughed, "In that case…let's see what else I can damage…"

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"Mr. Sonic, may I please borrow your chaos emerald? I promise that I'll give it back." Cream asked as sweetly as she could to Sonic. Cheese sat nervously on her head, fidgeting with one of her ears.

Sonic seemed surprised at this simple question. "Why, Cream? Shadow didn't put you up to this, did he?"

"umm….u-u…n-no.." she stammered, coughing several times to cover it up. "You see…Tails wants them…yeah…"

"Tails, huh? Then why didn't he ask me?" Sonic wondered out loud.

"I guess he was busy and he asked me and of course I agreed to help him. He says he needs it for one of his new machines." Cream informed him, uncomfortable at the lying she was doing.

"Well, okay." Sonic agreed, handing her the chaos emerald. "Just make sure you tell Tails that I'll need it back later, kay?"

Cream hastily agreed and ran off with the emerald. _I just lied to Mr. Sonic…_ She thought sadly to herself. _What will my mother think?_

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Cream's voice came over Amy's little ear piece radio set. "I got the emerald."

Amy's eyes gleamed in triumph as she answered, "Good job, Cream. Just chill back at the house, Lizzey and I are currently in Rouge's house. She doesn't seem to be home right now."

"Just be careful, Amy." Cream cautioned, switching her radio off.

"Okay, let's go." Amy whispered to Lizzey, pointing towards the door of Rouge's room. "She probably hides her jewels…so we've got to look everywhere and quickly!"

Lizzey merely nodded, already walking towards the room. She paused, suddenly taking out a can of special spray and spraying it throughout the room carefully. Red lights criss-crossing from the ceiling, walls, and floors flickered into view. _Oh snap!! _She thought.

"Now that's a setback…" Amy commented, finding no possible way to squeeze through all those intertwined lights.

"There must be a switch somewhere…" Lizzey suggested, glancing around several times, searching for possible code entry pads or hidden switches. "Look behind pictures and such."

"It's no use." Amy exclaimed in exasperation. "She doesn't even _have _any pictures up! What do we do now?!"

"Wait a minute…voice activation…" Lizzey murmured to herself before whispering, "I bet her voice will de-activate the lights…"

"Or a password…" Amy added. Her eyes lit up. "I know…" She waited a few minutes then raised her voice, "I always get what I want!" (ooc: I got this quote from wikiquote)

The lights dimmed, flashing into nothingness. Amy smiled in relief, walking to the door and carefully pulling it open. Lizzey followed, creeping past the ominous shadows of Rouge's home in sudden fear.

Amy glanced around, barely able to see in the darkness of the room. However, her eyes quickly adjusted to the poor lighting, as she thought she noticed a faint glow coming from the dresser drawers. She pulled them open, happy to find the sixth chaos emerald gleaming amongst several pairs of jeans. She grabbed it, leaping in fear as a shrieking alarm screamed at her.

She grabbed Lizzey by the arm and bolted for the door, crying in surprise as it slammed shut, the lock clicking shut. The windows barred themselves closed also.

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" Rouge asked, glaring at them from the other side of the room.

"Oh snap…" Amy thought.

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Shadow easily infiltrated the base as he dashed from hall to hall, too quick for the cameras to pick up his presence. Any robots he found in his way, he merely dodged past, taking extra special care to leave them be so that they wouldn't spread the alarm of an intruder.

"This is just too easy…" He muttered to himself, grabbing the emerald as he ran by the case and continuing on his way, exitting the base and leaving it, as if he had never even been there in the first place.

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**This chapter definitely feels a bit longer than normal…and took several days. (Okay, well I did squeeze some studying and some Full Metal Alchemist in that time too) Anyways…I hope you liked it! **

**But gosh, I'm so obsessive over FMA that I actually had a dream about it…yup…scary, eh? You might see a fanfic about that someday.**


	6. Rouge

**Yeah…I know…I'm evil for not updating for the past few months. Sorry sorry sorry sorry! I probably won't continue w/ FFnet for much longer, I've found another site called Deviantart that I can submit fanfictions and drawings too. If you want to know my username just let me know and I'll most likely tell you.**

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"And why would you two be snooping around in my base?" Rouge asked, tapping her high heeled boot against the ground as she glared at both of them. "_I'm_ the thief, not you two."

Amy struggled to find words. "Um…Rouge…this is complicated…but we need the chaos emerald…for a science fair project…" Her heart sank within her. At this rate, she would never get the emerald. She didn't want to be the one to let down her friends in such a dire emergency.

Rouge was not buying her lame lie. "Yeah and my dad owns the circus…"

Lizzey's eyes widened. "Really?!" she asked incredulously.

Rouge cocked an eyebrow, "It's called sarcasm, chick. Learn it."

Lizzey gritted her teeth in annoyance. "I can't decide who's worse…that bat or Shadow." She mumbled.

Rouge's sensitive ears twitched, easily picking up that statement. She paced around the room, hands on her hips. "Shadow you say? Tell me the truth and I might just consider letting you borrow my emerald."

"Okay, first of all _Rouge, _Shadow is taken!" Amy began, voice raised, "And second of all it really isn't any of your business!"

"Well then…I guess you can tell Shadsy that you failed to retrieve the emerald due to your own stubbornness."

"Okay, fine." Amy snapped, hurriedly explaining everything to her. "_Now _will you hand over the emerald?"

Rouge pretended to think about it to draw out their agony just a little bit longer. She waited until Amy looked as if she would snap then finally agreed. "Fine, but only if I can come along. Who knows what treasure could be hidden in a realm of angels."

Amy whispered into her communicator to Shadow. "I've got the chaos emerald but of course we have another tag-along."

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Sadar felt a twinge of fear run up and down his body, chilling his nerves. Something about that angel, with her fierce eyes and steady determination, seemed to overpower his skills as a swords-angel. He and she both knew that she was at an advantage. He attempted to fold his hurt wing, to prevent further injury, and then waited for her next move, planning on using her weight against her this time.

The female angel just stood there, a confident smirk playing across her lips. Her eyes taunted him as she sheathed her sword. "I won't even waste my time on you…" she hissed at Sadar whilst sneaking a glance at Jaymal. He seemed tense, ready to spring into action if she tried to escape. "This won't be easy…" she thought, "but I know I have to get out of here one way or another."

She gently stroked her wings into the air, just so that she could barely feel the oxygen sifting through her softest feathers so that she could test the wind. The conditions weren't very good for a quick get away, she decided, scrunching her nose in annoyance, but maybe she could manage to make a run for it until she reached outside.

Her breath caught in her chest as she heard Jaymal's level tone. "You don't remember anything, do you? I can tell by your eyes that something is missing."

She paused, forgetting all about the wind currents for a minute. "I wouldn't say that." She bluffed, staring him down. She was vaguely aware that Sadar and his troops silently left the room.

"Denial isn't good for you, my dear." He growled softly, "Everyone knows that the first stop is acceptance and the second is taking action. The first step is up to you…but the second, I can help you with…Melody"

"I'm listening…" Melody prompted, folding her wings.

"_What?!_" Shadow exclaimed, clearly exasperated upon sight of Rouge. "What happened to not telling anybody about this mission!?"

Amy sighed, "She wasn't gonna fork over the chaos emerald unless I told her the situation." She paused, "Besides, she might be useful."

Rouge sat on the softly hued couches of Amy's living room, feet propped up against the stone inset coffee table whilst staring up at the ceiling, ignoring the chatter around her. She glanced out one of the many large windows towards the left, still grasping the chaos emerald absently.

Shadow sighed, choosing not to answer.

"Hey! I know!" Lizzey exclaimed, "We can just replace Shadow with Rouge!"

"You're forgetting that I'm the one who can use chaos control…" Shadow pointed out, tossing up the emerald he stole from Eggman's base and catching it all in the same movement. He was really getting annoyed at Lizzey's constant remarks. If she kept it up for much longer, he felt as if he were going to explode.

Tails cut through the conversation with an agitated voice. "Could you stop the yapping? I'm trying to work here!" The two-tailed fox was surrounded by tools and spare parts, scattered across the wooden floor in some uncorrelated pattern. He held a wrench in his hand, currently making some adjustments to the beginning of a large circular machine. "I just need a few more hours and I should be done." He told them proudly, resting his hands on his hips in admiration of his project.

Currently it was just the framing of a large hoop, nuts and bolts used as reinforcement around the circumference. Attached to the contraption were two bases, used for balance, and several fork shaped pieces of metal and wire. Also, embedded near the bottom, were seven slots, similar in shape, and full of angles, cut meticulously in to hold the chaos emeralds.

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**Unfortunately, that's all I feel like writing currently. Maybe I'll be in more of a writing mood this weekend. I've got to hurry up and get this story finished. :D**


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